Gagosianannounces a new exhibition of nude paintings byTomWesselmannat the gallery'sBeverlyHillslocation.Tom Wesselmann: Intimate Spacesfollows the 2018 exhibitionWesselmann: 1963-1983andTom Wesselmann: Standing Still Lifesat Gagosian New York. Opening details are below.
In partnership with the artist's estate, the exhibition features essential works that define U.S. Pop art. Wesselmann brought innovative mixed media to still lifes, interior paintings, landscapes, and nudes that captured the energy of the emerging commercial culture.
My one intention is to always find new ways to make exciting paintings using the situation of the traditional nude.
Tom Wesselmann
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Great American Nudes
Tom Wesselmann: Intimate Spacesfocuses on the artist's primary subject, the female nude with key works fromGreat American Nudes (1961–73). Wesselmann’s nudes became icons of the 1960s sexual revolution. "Wishing to avoid portraiture, the artist frequently deemphasized facial features, foregrounding both abstraction and overt eroticism.“
"The figures dealt primarily with their presence,” he wrote (by his pseudonym, Slim Stealingworth). “Personality would interfere with the bluntness of thefactof the nude. When body features were included, they were those important to erotic simplification, like lips and nipples. There was no modeling, no hint at dimension.”
The Estate of Tom Wesselmann, Almine Rech, and Gagosian are also publishing a forthcoming book,Tom Wesselmann: Great American Nudes, authored by Susan Davidson with an essay by Rachel Middleman. It will be the first comprehensive publication dedicated to his body of work. The exhibitionTom Wesselmann: After Matisseis on view at Musée Matisse, Nice, until May 29, 2023.
Gagosian Beverly HillsIntimate SpacesOpening reception: Wednesday, May 3, 6–8pm May 3–June 16, 2023456 North Camden Drive, Beverly Hills